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Tuesday, April 24, 2012

TACKLING TEENAGE OBESITY TIP # 2 || SWITCH THE DIET, THEN LET THEM BE

Most of times, children love to eat what the parents give them. After all, the parents are the child's first main teachers for a good portion of life. So in essence, the child is continually modeling themselves off of the parents in every way, as a means to better understand the world and their relationship to it. That said, once you initiate a new diet regimen or routine for your child, allow the child to just be: basically, leave them alone.

Children don't like the feelings of pressure or force. They want to understand what has been instilled in them on their own terms. Children are like little scientists: even though there is a proven theory, they are going to test it out many times to see how solid that theory is until proven otherwise. So you, as a parent, have given them one theory. And in their world, they must see how that fits into their lives at this point: and of course, they want to see how they understand it. The moment a child feels forced or pressured into adopting a particular behavior, the parent is usually met with resistance. And as a result, the child may be starting to act in an opposite way.

The child wants to feel that they are in full control of their lives. They want to feel as if the parents are more like guides, guardians and philosophers that can teach them a few ways of doing things. And once the child has accepted this new information from the parents, they just want to try it out in their own little way by using their intuition and discrimination to find and cultivate a lifestyle that works best for them.

Now parents, don't take it personal. It's not that the child doesn't respect your opinion or your beliefs about food and health. But it's that the child wants to feel liberated in their decisions. They want to allow the teachings you give them to seep deeply into their minds. And the moment a little tension occurs between you and them, it makes them feel stressed. And stress in children is probably the main reason why there is such a vast obesity problem. So it is your job as a parent to keep the child's stress to a minimum: all while teaching and showing them various ways of maintaining a healthy and abundant lifestyle for their mind and body.

So let the child just be. It is not overly important that the child adhere to every single rule about eating: as they are still growing and expanding with the natural flows and rhythms of the universe. However, just set some ground rules, show them various ways to attain a particular goal, and just let them figure it out all by themselves within the set guidelines.